Airplane with “fans”: new engineers’ word. Part 2

On this market presence of electric engine may provide ne airplane with huge advantage because today fuel expenses according to the different estimates are from 29 to 34% of all expenses of airline companies. Use of electric engine will allow reducing this figure by 5 times! But taking into consideration high prices of oil products (and in the future they may be even higher), electric engines become very attractive for airline companies. Besides, electric engines allow reducing volume of air emissions (in the strategy of aviation development that was approbated by European Commission is told that till 2050 volume of CO2 emissions must be reduced by 75% and nitrogen oxide by 90%).

Not only start-ups are going to create electric airplanes. Industry giants also have such projects. For example, Airbus together with Siemens and Rolls-Royce Holdings are working on the model of big airplane E-Fan X. On the first stage engineers want to make it hybrid – airplane will get both usual engines that will work on kerosene and electric aggregates.

Forecasts when electric airplanes will appear in the sky are different. Optimists like the head of Eviation Aircraft say that it will happen in 2020 but more prudent experts say about 2030. But the main thing is that specialists agree that airplanes of the future will be able to fly without kerosene. “Electric airplanes become real and today e can see the future without dependence on the oil” – said the CEO of low-cost airline company EasyJet Johan Lundgren.